Adam Gase – October 4, 2017
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Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(It seems as though QB Jay Cutler has not thrown deep as often during the regular season as he did in training camp and preseason. Is that true and why is that?) – “I don’t know if that’s 100 percent true. When we look at our hit charts, about what we’re calling and trying to get down the field, I mean it is what it is sometimes. You only can make a throw if you’re upright. There has been a few times where we’ve called some things and we haven’t been able to get the ball off, whether it’s some kind of pressure issue or he’s had to escape from the pocket and he’s had to lower his eyes. In practice, it’s a lot easier because you’re not … A d-linemen runs by you and you just keep playing.”
(How often have you had a wide receiver lined up wrong or running the wrong route depth or not running the precise route, overall, in general, the first three weeks?) – “I don’t think it’s been anything that’s been extraordinarily alarming. We’re better than what we were last year but it’s … I know everybody wants to try to focus on one group. It’s just every play has a different story. We have to get a lot of things cleaned up. We have to just be more in sync with what we’re trying to do upfront, what we’re trying to do at quarterback, running back, tight end, wide receiver. We just need to be more on the same page and eliminate the mistakes of eight guys are doing it right and three guys are doing it wrong. It needs to be, if anybody’s doing it wrong, it needs to be down to one guy, to where we can still have success on the play. Right now, too many guys are having an issue here and there. That’s the main thing we’re going to get cleaned up this week.”
(The defense, at least in my opinion, has had three straight winning-caliber performances. How frustrating is that to you that you haven’t been able to capitalize on that?) – “Extremely. I mean that’s my side of the ball and when those guys are playing the way they are, I feel like I’m wasting really good performances. Between what they did against L.A. with Philip (Rivers), and then what they did against Drew Brees this last week, it’s disappointing because we’re at 0-0 (last week against New Orleans), and we’re looking to hold onto the ball at the end of the half so they can’t get it back. We do the one thing that we can’t do – we get a penalty. We have a good run and we get a penalty, (and the) next thing you know, we’re backed up to the point of now we’re just trying to eat up as much time as possible, because once you have a negative play like that, your drive is toast. We can’t have that happen. We’ve got to clean these things up and however the officials are calling it that game, it is what it is. We have to do the right things. We’ve got to make sure that we’re not getting these penalties that put us in a bad position.”
(Without getting to the extreme of you must bench your quarterback, what does QB Jay Cutler have to do better?) – “I think the biggest thing is we just have get him comfortable in the pocket. We’ve got to be able to let him set his feet. Really, that’s the No. 1 thing that we’ve just got to keep working on. I think if you ask any quarterback if they feel like they’re getting pressure and they’re trying to slide one way or the other and they’re throwing off balance, it’s going to be hard to be consistent on completions. We just need to get it to where we have a clean pocket and then when he does have a clean pocket, we have to make sure that he sets his feet and throws the ball the way that I know how he can throw it. He’s older now. He’s not 25 (years old) anymore so those off-balance throws, they’re tougher. They’re not going to happen like they used to, and he knows that, and we’ve talked about being able to find that soft spot in the pocket and set your feet and make the throw.”
(Are you a big believer in chemistry takes time to build or is it just lack of execution right now?) –- “The chemistry part, when you kind of start late like we did, I can see it taking some time; but we’ve had enough time. We’ve had enough time and we need to be better at executing what we’re doing and making sure that we have more guys doing their jobs than what we’ve had, and that’s how we can get things corrected on offense. At this point, the excuses are running out. There are no more excuses. It’s either get the job done or we’ll find somebody that can.”
(You talked a couple of weeks ago about scaling things back. Does QB Jay Cutler have a full grasp of the complete playbook?) – “Yes. He’s fine. That’s the last person I’m worried about.”
(How much of an advantage is it to finally be home?) – “It’s nice that we don’t have to get on a plane. When you’re traveling, the thing is for a coaching staff is that you’re going to work on the plane. It’s just a mobile office. For the players, the tough thing is for the guys that are banged up and flying, just what it does to their bodies. That’s what makes it to where that’s the challenging part of who takes care of their body, who hydrates right, who eats right. All of those little things, those matter. Some of the guys that struggle handling it, those are the guys that, they struggle when you play on the road. The guys that are true pros that know how to do it and do it right week in and week out, that’s why you don’t see a different performance whether they are home or away.”
(Last year it felt like TE Dion Sims and TE MarQueis Gray were very effective in the blocking game. How are your top two tight ends Julius Thomas and Anthony Fasano doing at run blocking?) – “We’ve been ok, but we haven’t been good enough. I know we can get better with what we’re doing. One of the main reasons that we really liked bringing Anthony in is because we felt liked that gave us an advantage in that area. He surprised me with how good of a receiver he is. I really enjoy being around him because he is the ultimate pro. He’s constantly trying to perfect his craft. Julius is a better blocker than he ever was with me before. I feel like the effort’s there. There are a lot of things there that are positive; but, we just have to do better.”
(How is CB Byron Maxwell handling the situation with CB Cordrea Tankersley and what do you expect from him moving forward?) – “You’ll have to ask him that specific question. He hasn’t shown me any signs as far as doing anything different than what he’s always done as far as working at practice and trying to find ways to get better. I know last week when we practiced, he came out every day and battled. He did both sides. He did scout team. He did stuff with the regular defense. That’s more of a question for him, but as far as what I’ve seen I haven’t really seen a change in his practice habits.”
(You’ve done this with CB Byron Maxwell last year and now last week. How does he react when you’re delivering that to him that this is the decision you’ve mad?) – “My conversations with him, he’s told me that ‘I’m going to put my head down and work.’ That’s what he told me. That’s what I expect guys to do. Whatever decision that’s been made, those are the decisions and your job as an NFL player is to go practice. If somebody says that you’re up, be ready to be up.”
(On the other side, are you optimistic about CB Xavien Howard?) – “Yes, we’re just going to have to go through the week and see how he feels. It’s such a day-to-day deal with him right now. We’ll take it like that. We’ll just go one day at a time.”
(Will CB Byron Maxwell be an option if CB Xavien Howard cannot play?) – “I think everybody is an option right now.”
(Titans QB Marcus Mariota is questionable for Sunday. How much tougher is it to be prepared for two potential quarterbacks?) – “That’s a tough assignment for the defensive staff because they are different. There are similarities to what they do on an offense, but at the same time, it’s not the same guy. If you watch Marcus play, there’s not many guys that play that position that can run for a 40-yard touchdown and can run away from everybody. He causes a lot of problems and he puts a lot of options on the table for them. It really thins out the defense because you better be assignment sound (or else) he’s going to hurt you.”
(Wednesday, Thursday practice plan overall as far as work load and physicality with being on the road and everything, is it scaled back a little or actually step up a little?) – “We lost 20-0. We need to go to work.”
(You’ve had success in the past running the football against eight man fronts at times and this year even when boxes aren’t necessarily loaded, there’s still plenty of penetration there. What are the differences between having success last year and then now?) – “Just getting everybody to do the right thing. We know what we’re going to see most of the time. We’re not seeing different defenses no matter who we’re playing. We’re getting a lot of the same looks. The way I look at is we better start executing against some of the defenses we’re seeing or we’re going to keep seeing them. Defensive coordinators, when they see you have a weakness and you’re not doing something right, they’re going to do it and they should. Until you can show everybody that you can do it and put it on tape, you’re going to keep seeing the same stuff. “
(DE Charles Harris has been low key statistically. Have you seen improvement and, if so, where?) – “Yes, the last game I though he was disruptive, high energy. He was flying around the field. That was what we’ve been expecting. You can throw the stats out the window. That doesn’t mean anything to me. When the quarterback feels you and he’s getting rid of the ball because he feels like you’re creating pressure on the side of the ball you’re rushing from or in the run game, if you’re doing your job, which our defense has been the majority of the time, where everybody is playing team defense, that’s why the run game has changed.”
(Aside from the headphone malfunction, which obviously was a huge key early last week, any other factors for why the clock has gone to the final 5 seconds before snapping a lot of plays the last couple weeks?) – “That’s a tough one to explain. We’ve just got to get back to the huddle and get out of the huddle and get lined up and ready to go. It’s a big point of emphasis for us. It has been since the start of the season and really, it was last year with ‘Get to the ball, get back to the huddle, give us some time.’ That clock will go quick if you’re walking around and we’re getting into melees in between plays. The shot clock is going. The officials aren’t going to stop it for you. You’ve got to get back to the huddle, get the play call, get up to the line of scrimmage. Nobody should be asking questions. It’s not that hard. Line up and play.”
(What was the thinking, the reasoning, for throwing out the Wildcat?) – “It’s something we wanted to do against them. It was what they did and what we had planned to do, we thought we were good. We just didn’t do a good job of executing it.”
(How long did that take to … have you been saying that for weeks and months and years?) – “It’s the same play we run if the running back is back there compared to the quarterback. The running back or the quarterback, it’s the same play. Everything is the same. It’s not that hard.”
(I read what you said about that play on Monday and you said I think that QB Jay Cutler did what he’s supposed to do on that play?) – “Yes.”
(Do you mean QB Jay Cutler specifically is just to stay out of it so he doesn’t risk injury?) – “Yes. As soon as he steps forward, they can knock the … I won’t say it; but they can hit him. If he steps back or doesn’t move, now you’re looking at different kinds of penalties. Until you go through it where a quarterback steps off the ball and starts working downfield and you watch one of them get blasted … I’ve got a little experience. I kind of know what I’m doing.”
(Did you give QB Jay Cutler a hard time at all about his posture on that play?) – “No. You guys worry about a lot more things than I do.”
(Once again, you allowed 3.1 yards per carry, which is your season average. What has been the difference in the rush defense? It’s one of the top ones in the league.) – “They’re playing as a group. You don’t have guys freelancing. You’ve got guys doing exactly what they’re coached to do. That’s why they’re having success. Guys are playing hard. Have we had some change in personnel? A little bit; but for the most part, it’s the same guys. I think it starts with that front. I think Cam Wake’s done an unbelievable job as far as showing those guys how you should play the run and setting the edge. (Ndamukong) Suh is doing what he always does. He’s disruptive. They’ve got to put two guys on him almost every play, so we’ve got a lot of guys that are singled up.”
(You started 1-4 last year. Do you think having been in an adverse situation before helps you to convince the players to get your message across more?) – “It’s a different team. We’ll see. We’ve only played three games. We haven’t even finished the first quarter. Everybody else has except for us and Tampa. Every year is a different year.”
(It seems to us that just from the naked eye that RB Jay Ajayi is leaving no yards on the field. He’s getting as much as what’s blocked for him. Is that your belief that he’s maximizing the holes, the limited holes that are there?) – “Absolutely. It’s very rare that he’ll make a mistake with his run reads. There have been a couple of times that I wish he would just take what he can get to get us the first down. We’re constantly talking about let’s stay first down, second down, first down. Let’s stay out of third down. Like that short-yardage play, I would have loved to see him just stick it – even though we screwed up the blocking scheme – I would have loved to see him just truck that guy and just get us the one (yard). I think the more he does it and he kind of sees the flow of the game and how things have been going for us, he’s going to keep working to get that first down so we just get another set. It’s more plays for us.”
(On that Wildcat thing again, did you have a runner coming across the field as an option or no?) – “I can’t tell you exactly…”
(It’s on film.) – “That’s fine. They don’t know exactly what we’re doing. Maybe I had something off of that, that I wanted to call at some point, if we would have gotten back to the huddle. It’s very frustrating on that play, knowing what we had planned and what happened.”
(The zone read worked.) – “The zone read always works.”
